Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Dija Renuka. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Hi Dija, thanks for joining us today. What were some of the most unexpected problems you’ve faced in your career and how did you resolve those issues?
A few years ago I was working on the largest project with the largest budget I’ve ever had to manage (at the time). I was working on a short film that was an adaption of a play written by Ruthie Buescher called Rasheeda’s Freedom Day to honor stories of the long term residence in the community. This story told the true story of Ms. Joanna LeNoir who as a teenager got her entire family including her mother and child away from her abusive step father. This film was my first multi-state film as well as my first period piece. I was producing, directing, acting, craft servicing, doing costumes and managing the sets. All I wanted was to do a good job and honor Ms. Joanna’s story and make her proud. I remember we were searching and searching for a place to film the main part of the story and location after location was falling through. In addition, we were in the middle of COVID and I ended up asking my daughter to play the lead role. I was stressed to the max!
One day I just had to take a step back and take a breathe.
It finally hit me that my old house I lived in when I was first married was unoccupied and it was built in the right time period! I asked if we could use it to film and it was available!
But wait…here’s the juicy part.
As I walked up and down the wooden floors planning the set design, I was transported back 18 years earlier when I was walking those same wooden floors as a newly married wife and soon to be mother. As you can imagine I had a lot of thoughts going through my head. I was recently graduated, newly married and pregnant with our first child…and we were very VERY broke. I would walk up and down those wooden floors when I couldn’t sleep and through tears would ask God if I ever would accomplish my dreams. What did the future hold? How was I going to do it as a mother? Was this the end of my dreams to be an actress?
I came back tot he present and I realized that 18 years later – I was walking those same floors planning a film that I was directing and acting in. AND that child I was growing in my womb was going to star in this film! (She would later go on to win best actress at the International Austin Arts Festival). God had answered my prayers and I almost had missed it in the midst of my stress and worry.
When I talked to my friend and fellow creative, Marlena Banks, about my revelation she said “You were walking in your destiny and didn’t know it!”
I wanted to tell this story as you walk through unexpected problems and issues in your creative journey and encourage you stop and reflect on the situation. What is this circumstance trying to reveal to you about yourself and your destiny? You may be surprised and even encouraged when you look at it from a different angle. You might gain new insights, find opportunities for gratitude, and even find a way to celebrate how far you’ve come.
Dija, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
Hello! My name is Dija Renuka and I am many things, like all humans are. I’m a mixed culture woman, a mother, a wife an actor a creator, an M.S. Warrior and avid reader and absorber of life through the lens of my faith. I love living and the older I get the more grateful I am for the little joys I experience daily.
I always knew I wanted to tell stories. I was the little girl at the edge of my sit watching Carol Burnett and Lucille Ball and Lily Tomlin as Edith Ann. I was fascinated that these women were creating these amazing characters. I didn’t know it at the time as a little girl but I probably felt it – their creative power – they were not only the performers but they were the creators of their shows. When I was 10 I went to my first movie – it was then, when the lights came down like a warm velvet blanket of darkness and I saw the first scenes I knew I wanted to be a part of this world. Later I would start to find deeper meaning for what I wanted to do with what I created. My teen years were wonderful at time but extremely lonely and confusing at other times. As a mixed culture person growing up in the 80’s I couldn’t quite find myself outside of myself it that makes sense. But I knew that I wanted to be that for someone else. I wanted to help others feel seen – I wanted to experience deeper connection through creativity.
I went to Purdue to study Mechanical engineering because I thought that’s what would be impressive and acceptable to my parents who sacrificed so much to come to America. But after several semesters of stress I finally confessed to my parents I wanted to change to theater. My parents supported me and I graduated with degrees in Biomechanics and Acting.
Over the past 20 years I’ve carved out my own path. I raised my kids while working in the health field, teaching community arts programs and doing what I could on the side in film and theater. I made hundreds of Youtube videos which grew into short films that started winning awards. I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in 2016 and had to quite my job. I decided to start teaching film camps to kids and that began to really take off. Meanwhile I started getting hired by non-profits and individuals to produce films!
I’ve now produced 15 short films, just finished a documentary on Prison Re-entry and am working on my first feature film called Coffee Beans and Love. Coffee Beans and Love is inspired by my background of growing up in a Jamaican/East Indian home, marrying a man of Ethiopian descent and raising a multi cultural multi ethnic family which I LOVE! It’s a love story between three generations!
During this journey I realized that everything I was creating since 2004 from my plays to my films to my community art programs were all speaking to community and social justice issues. I wanted to know more about how art created change. I ended up serving for two terms with Americorps in the Immigrant Refugee Service Corps and Enrichment Corps. During my service I soon discovered Social Impact Entertainment and became a student of understanding how entertainment could come off the screen or stage and make REAL impact in the world.
In 2021 I decided to get my Masters in Social Practice Art to fill in the gaps and create a practice around my work. My thesis is about using the creative process of filmmaking to process identity in kids of immigrants of color. I’m extremely excited to use this medium I love to help young people deepen their identity. Understanding myself and my role in this world has been paramount to me walking in my purpose and power. I want that for everyone. I want that for the whole world.
I’m most proud that I’m able to bring my ethos to my work. I grew up in an immigrant family that was very spiritual and I bring those philosophies to my sets and my leadership style. I want my sets to be a safe place. I believe that the environment I strive to create comes out on screen. And what comes out on screen comes alive in the experience of watching my films. I believe that as artists we have a calling to make the unseen seen. My calling is to be a vessel to create stories that inspire people in this world to know themselves a little bit better than when they first entered the theater. To feel loved, to feel seen and go do that for someone else.
Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?
I recently had to make a big pivot in my business. These past few years have been really good in terms of working with clients and making films but it always has been word of mouth. Earlier this year I decided I was going to really try and grow my production company intentionally and try to bring on some full-time employees. I even was planning to join this high end coaching program to grow my business. But I had this overwhelming super strong feeling that I was NOT supposed to go down that road. This can be really unnerving when you’ve been working so hard in one direction for so long. But it’s also really important to me to listen to the still (but powerful) small voice inside. When I really thought about it I saw this “pause” as an opportunity to re-evaluate if I was going in the direction I was called in. The truth was when I looked at what I loved to do and what I was doing for a paycheck things weren’t lining up. My last few projects were absolutely amazing but they were exhausting and I was feeling burned out. When I really did some reflection I realized there were parts of my work that weren’t aligned with my strengths and it was draining me terribly. If I had decided to continue down the road of living in the role of producer/director/wardrobe/line producer/1st AD/etc I was going to get so burned out I would want to quit this industry that I love so much. As I began to shed the roles that didn’t align with where I was creatively I began to get so much more clarity and energy! I literally would find myself smiling and full of so much joy at random times during the day! It really took some courage to see myself as the creative I’ve always wanted to be and cut away the parts that weren’t reflective of what I desired. There was a period where things looked bleak financially. But things are slowly turning around. I’m connecting with amazing people, more aligned opportunities are coming to me and I’m feeling excited and energized again! Taking time to reflect, step into my true self and communicate that with others has been really liberating. I feel more confident than ever that this new direction will take me into greater fulfillment, opportunities and impact. I’m so glad that I listened to that still small (yet powerful) voice inside me. I hope you take the time to listen too.
What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?
I want to answer this question by sharing my creative journey with you.
Under 5: I’m born to a Jamaican mother and Indian father in Chicago Illinois. I come from generations of believers in God on one side and Hindu Priests on the others. As a child I’m just having fun living my best life! I see a poster in the early 1980’s at the mall of a girl who looks like ME! I have this feeling that I can do THAT! My mom asks me what I want to be when I grow up and I tell her “I want to be an actress!” When I go to school I have my first experience with being told I wasn’t American because I my parents were immigrants. My Indian father assures me I’m American – that’s all I needed to hear.
5-9 years old: It just makes me super happy to play make believe with my sister and make up epic stories for our cabbage patch dolls! I’m the kid in my multi cultural neighborhood who goes around asking everyone to come out and play after school! I’m the ring leader for adventure in my community! Lol! I watch the movie on TV about Nadia Comaneci, the first gymnast to be given a perfect 10 and decide I want to be a gymnast like her.
10 years old: My dad takes me to see my first movie in the movie theater and I realize I need to do this “thing” and create this happy feeling again! We have a lot of fun theater hopping! (Perks of the 80’s lol!)
10-13 years old: Moved away from all my friends and found comfort in movies and tv shows. I learn how characters can make you feel less alone in the world. I want to do that for others. I also get in trouble at school because when faced again with the race boxes I wrote “HUMAN” across the top. A gymnastics team comes to my school and I make my mom sign me up with their club.
13-16: I am really into gymnastics. I travel around the country competing. I win some state championships and place in the top ten at regionals. I’m one of the few black girls at the gym but then I end up training at the gym with Olympic Gold Medalist Dominic Dawes and my world opens up! Meanwhile I start taking acting classes at highschool. One day I finally find me voice outside after school when it finally hits me how to use my diaphragm to project!!! Did I just open my chakra? I start sneaking into the theater after school to watch rehearsals before heading to the gym for practice. Every part of my life feels a little lonely but being in the theater are my happiest moments!
Senior year: I finally have so many injuries from gymnastics that I have quit gymnastics. I find myself in the theater and having a group of friends who “get me” for the first time in my life! I get the lead in the senior show! I am so happy! I’m finally doing it!
Freshman year of college: I study engineering at Purdue University but I audition for shows. I get cast in the chorus where I get to use my gymnastics skills to play an acrobat. I don’t care if rehearsals are until 11pm and classes are at 7:30am. I’m around these amazing artists! I part of a community!I get to be my whole self in the theater! I wish I could study this instead of physics based calculus.
Sophomore year of college: I tell my parents I don’t want to be an engineer. My immigrant parents support me and my dad says “you can switch but study something else as a back up”. ‘NUFF SAID!!!! I threw myself into theater. I gained confidence, discipline, I got out of my comfort zone I started growing as a person!!!
Early 20’s: I graduate with a degree in Acting…and biomechanics. 😏 I get married to my college sweetheart who is an Ethiopian – American and start popping out babies. We’ve merged four cultures together in one fell swoop. I’m now raising a multi-cultural multi ethnic family. I go to work at the hospital to help take care of my young family. I also start working at a non profit and start to create community arts programming. When a young boy is murdered I produce my first play called “A Song for Peace” to start the healing process of the community – but I don’t know that “healing work” is what I’m doing until later. I do my first one woman show to heal myself of post partum depression and get to take it to New York. I discover this new platform called YouTube and start a channel and a blog! I finally found a creative outlet while I was a stay at home mom.
30’s: I continue serving my community through Americorps and community arts programming and short films that speak to community issues. I start to process my identity as a child of immigrants. I being to accept and begin to heal from the mental health experiences with living between cultures. My own family experiences tragedy with gun violence not once but twice. I begin to view my art as a weapon for change by producing short films around grief and gun violence. My screening events include panel discussions and multimedia arts experiences. I start getting known in my city for what I’m making as an artist. I become obsessed with the question “how does art create change?”. I discover Social Impact Entertainment and study everything I can about it on my own. During this time I’m also diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, quit my job and officially start my production company Blue House Entertainment and teaching youth film camps. I find out I really LOVE teaching. My family travels to Ethiopia where I experience a re-awakening with my faith.
Early 40’s: I feel called to get my Masters in Social Practice Arts and join a program at The University of Indianapolis. I answer the question “how does art create change?”. I create a program for processing identity through the creative process of filmmaking in second generation Americans of color. I finally begin to embrace the type of artist I’ve always been inside. I get accepted to a fellowship program to grow in my work and career as an artist. My faith and spiritual life become extremely important to me.
My mission emerges: Story telling is the way that I processed life, grew in my identity and deepened my faith. This journey has helped me to walk in my purpose as a healer, inspirer and advocate. My mission is to hear God’s voice and create spirit led projects that help others process life and grow in their identity so they can soar in their own life’s purpose. This is what drives me today. 
Contact Info:
- Website: http://DijaHenry.com
- Instagram: @dijarenuka
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Dijarenuka
- Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/dijarenuka
- Twitter: @dijarenuka
- Youtube: http://youtube.com/dijahenry
- Tiktok: @dijarenuka
Image Credits
Jaicey Bledsoe Darye Henry Salome Pathak Julie Crooke